Rajastan

Greetings from Pushkar, Rajastan. I took the train from Delhi to Jaipur where I met my friend, and from Jaipur, we took the bus to Pushkar. Jaipur is a metropolitan city, like Delhi, but it is smaller and less populated, and therefore, it feels less frantic and less aggressive. I like Jaipur; traffic laws are actually enforced! It is quite a change from most of the other parts of India I have visited. I must be becoming a city-girl because I was very much relieved to be treading on pavement, noticing the cars, buses, auto and pedal rickshaws flowing in an organised manner via round-abouts. My friend, who is from Varanasi, says that Jaipur is a well-mannered city. He is an engineering student at a university in Jaipur. We went to city park and it was a real park-with grass, trees and stone walk-ways. It was so peaceful. There were moments when I forgot I was in India, it felt like a park in the U.S. During one of these moments, I saw three women dressed in saris, carrying bundles if firewood on their heads and remembered I was in India. My friend and I went to the Central (historical) Museum, and artifacts dating back from the 19c A.d. The silver craftsmanship exhibited by the Mughal empire is extraordinary. The were made of silver and jade and hand carved in varying patterns and the eating ware was equally ornate. In addition to Mughal artifacts, the museum also displayed hand-carved, stone statues of Hindi gods. Further, the museum had halls dedicated to carpets, pottery and painted murals that depicted Hindi myths. I will see the pink city and the myriad of palaces when I return from Pushkar.
We took the bus to Pushkar and spent the day visited the various Hindi and Sikh temples. From the bus window, I could see huge marble slabs sitting in front of store-houses; marble and other stones and gems are mined from the Snake mountains and neighboring hillsides. Pushkar is a holy city, situated on Pushkar lake and is home to the only Brahma temple in all of India. Like Varanasi, ghats surround the lake, and the city is built up from these steps. We prayed at the Brahma temple, then made an offering of flowers, turmeric, sugar and rice to the ghat;praying for the well-being and prosperity of ourselves and our families.
The architecture of the buildings and temples has more of a Middle Eastern influence, and although the primary religion remains Hinduism, the Rasjastani people have their own unique customs, language and dress. The women's saris are bright oranges, and fluorescent yellows and pinks. The women also wear a large hoop earring in their left nostril and belts made of silver. Rajastan has a desert like climate and is full of sage brush and strong winds, but there are also palms and coconut trees growing here. It is common to see camels roaming the streets, and each year, there is an enormous camel festival held here. While tourism is apparent here, the city feels very calm and relaxing.
Tomorrow, we are going to catch the sunrise at the Savitri temple that is set on a neighboring hill, looking over the city. Savirti is the first wife of Brahma and there is a long story here, but I'll have to ask my friend about the story, again.
I only have six more days here in the Bharat, the Chariot of Wisdom. Bharat is the Sandskrit name for India.